


"The Forest"

by EasyNitesAngel



Category: Hetalia: Axis Powers
Genre: Alternate Universe - Human, Alternate Universe - The Last Unicorn Fusion, Gen, Mythical Beings & Creatures, Unicorns
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-07-07
Updated: 2016-07-07
Packaged: 2018-07-22 02:22:05
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,321
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7415521
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/EasyNitesAngel/pseuds/EasyNitesAngel
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Five brothers - tied together not in blood, but in bond - as hunters of mythical creatures have ultimately been searching for one beast for countless years and have not seen it since their start. Many claim it a myth, and despite their refusal to believe other people, their failure began to gradually, yet unwillingly lead them to agree. However, one night they approach, to their very disbelief of all things...</p>
            </blockquote>





	"The Forest"

It was nothing like any creature they had ever seen before. 

Just moments ago stood the most magnificent beast the five men had ever laid eyes upon—and just as suddenly as it was noticed, it was gone. Vanished: no grand poof with traces of magical dust left behind or anything. Only their memories would prove that it truly was there, but only seconds after were they beginning to feel irresolute of what their eyes had seen. Time was held to a stop once its presence was recognized and crept back to moving forward before they broke out of their lucid trance. Did it really happen? Had they seen it? 

Perhaps. It was too detailed of a living dream that any of them had known. Just beyond the tangle of bushes and low-hanging branches of the aging oak once stood a creature only myths and fairytales had witnessed: a unicorn. It was almost too good to be true. All of its beauty was too much for human eyes to enrapture quickly: from the cloven hooves weathered and softened by the earth to the faint light blue glow given by the sun and moon surrounding its coat, it all seemed impossible for it to exist. Its body was worn by nature's time, yet ageless all the same. The mane fell into swirly, silky wisps and curls as did the end of the lion's tail. Its small, deer-like face was carved by the wind and softened and cracked by the snow, but what truly captured their attention were the eyes, and most importantly, the horn. It jutted out between the ears—one ear split down at the tip which was the creature's only noticeable flaw—and spiraled upward to a sharp point at the top, giving a stronger glow than than the rest of the body. Its eyes were noticed soon after; those entrancing, wise eyes which seemed to have seen and known everything that had passed and have yet to come. They were a deep sapphire-green like the raging oceans of relentless battering upon each wave, yet like the calm, sweet breeze rippling through a meadow of spring grass. Its hues were impossible, speechlessly beautiful colors the men had never seen before. Once those eyes looked into theirs, they felt all of its knowledge, everything this unicorn had ever seen and felt, suddenly rush into them and was snatched away. Then, it simply—as their barely comprehending minds would put it—faded with the misty fog of the night. 

The Dane— a master of capturing beasts claimed unreal—who was still slightly drunken from the enchanting spell, frowned. "You all... saw that, right?" he blinked and squinted at the dark foliage, seeming unsure of himself. 

Doubting silence was his answer. The others seemed as uncertain as he was. A few endless minutes after, one fidgeted under his stance, remaining utterly amazed at the sight that had so quickly and unfortunately disappeared. He was the first to return the Dane's question with astonished words clouded by disbelief, "...Wow. Was that really... _it?_ "

Another—the Norwegian who knew all the names of every mythical creature conjured up by man's imagination and by God's image—nodded. He, too, was shocked beyond words. Years ago, he had given up on searching for this particular beast, reluctantly calling it a myth. Was this a miracle, or was it beginning to become a dream as reality seeped back in? He glanced at the tall man at his side. His usually intimidating expression was replaced with that familiar uncertainty. The Norwegian nodded again, knowing this was true—for the tall man's sight was quick and observant of every detail: from the exact cuts of a rock to the vein of a leaf, not a single crease or pigment was left undetected in those condescending blue eyes. Only now, those eyes were questioning. He then glanced over to his other side, wanting to see the inexplicable wonder gleaming in his younger brother's eyes. It made him feel even more lifted that his most dearest sibling also noticed the impossible beauty before it slipped away. Yet, suspicion darkened that curious glimmer as mere seconds passed. 

Really, the unicorn seemed too impossible and incomprehensible to exist. Its own appearance was beyond man to ever fully capture and see, and its everlasting and knowing wisdom radiating from it seemed so unreal, like something beyond creation could ever imagine. 

"P'rhaps it was it. We all just saw it, didn't we?" the Swedish man asked, seeming more confident in what he saw than the others. 

The Dane chuckled, scratching the side of his nose. "I dunno. Honestly, I'm beginning to think it was all some... hallucination, or something," he answered slowly. Even he couldn't think of any words to describe what he was feeling. 

"A unicorn," the youngest breathed, too stupefied to think of anything else. He gulped a bit of air before continuing, "that really can't be..."

His elder brother hummed in agreement. Yet, he knew what he saw. "I thought they weren't real..." 

The silence was brought back up again, heaving on the shoulders of everyone as disbelief loomed over them. In a way, the unicorn wasn't real, it seemed. A light gust of wind picked up and rustled through the branches of the trees and combed through the slouched, old willows, bringing small flowers through the air to land in the lake and disrupt its still waters. The movement of the air blanketed by the night sky felt almost eerie, carrying the whispers of the forest animals nestled in their home away from danger. 

A leaf crunched. 

Immediately, five heads whirled around to barely capture the blue-white phantom rush back into hiding, disappearing into nothingness like before. Just beyond the pond was a thicket of brier darkened by the night, which allowed nothing to see through it. A rush of temptation raced into the Dane’s veins then, which the Swedish man caught quickly. He placed a hand on his shoulder in warning.

“Leave it. Maybe it only wants to watch us,” he said, earning a shameful nod the hunter. Of course, they all knew a unicorn was never a creature to capture and treat like any other animal. But, man’s nature and insatiable curiosity would never fail to harm such a pure and dignified being. They knew of what would happen all too well.

The Finnish man was the next to hesitantly speak after another prolonged silence. It was as they were afraid their voices would send the unicorn off; not out of fear, but to stay away from the disdainful voice of a human. “So… what now? Should we look for other animals here?”

“Any animal protected within a unicorn’s forest will be kept unseen by anyone. Poachers will find no game here, and we might not even be able to catch a glimpse of one, either,” the Norwegian answered, the slightest bit of disappointment barely showing through his words. “They all say animals living where a unicorn roams will acquire a bit of their magic, so to speak.”

“Well, this is no ordinary forest, huh?” the Dane smiled—strangely in a soft manner unlike he often wouldn’t—, and weakly laughed, “I had a feelin’ once those hunters earlier told us it’s like spring here all the time, something big was up. But, I wouldn’t imagine… _this_ , honestly.”

It was true what the group of strangers informed the five before they headed into the forest. Not once in a single generation’s memory had one leaf from a maple or a birch tree fallen from its branch or brown when cold weather approached. Not one snowflake had touched the fresh earth and never once did a bitterly cold wind rush through any part through the woodland. It was always warm and a lively spring green, never had the timid air of early fall crossed paths with where the unicorn lived. Upon noticing this, several poachers would come eager for the most wondrous, bountiful game they would ever find to come back with nothing in their hands. But, they couldn’t let go of that peculiar feeling lingering around them. It was inexplicably eerie, as if every animal followed their movement, but they saw not one living creature. The occasional chirp of a bird would sound, but no bird was seen; the chatter of squirrels would be heard, but none were caught scattering to hide.

But, that wasn’t what these men were here for, of course—it was for the rumors they’d heard. Some villagers nearby claimed a unicorn lived in the forest, but only the craziest of people would believe it. After all, unicorns were only in fairytales…

“Maybe it’s that strange feelin’, too, ya know?” the Finnish man asked, his voice at a low whisper. He was referring to what the poachers that attempted to hunt there in the past, like the animals were watching from afar. 

The Dane nodded. “No wonder they don’t like hunting here, right? It’s not something ya’d feel anywhere else, much less a forest.”

It was perfectly silent again, the remaining bit of awe still holding fast to the hunters. Before, they had seen and caught many mythical beasts in the past, but this unicorn was surely beyond anything they had ever witnessed. They had known true terror and fear, amazement, and uncertainty, but this creature easily introduced them to the rawness of such wonder before them. It was similar to what being loved, yet intimidated by an impossibly powerful figure beyond one’s ability to understand felt like. There was the sight of inexplicable beauty, but the fear of all that knowledge that they only had a glimpse of. To think, once the men thought that they’d only needed to see a unicorn to know it was real, they had so many more questions to follow. 

The unicorn’s trance lingered, meaning the men knew it was still watching them nearby. The Norwegian man glanced to his right to notice a clear pond with a single lily pad floating above the surface. As if his feet had control of themselves, he found himself walking to it. He knelt down and brought out his hand to lightly touch the cold water, which rippled gently beneath his touch. Quietly, he said—after turning to the others—, “I’ve heard unicorns often live forests like these with a clear pool. Something about the water telling them they will always be the most beautiful thing in the world.”

Another light chuckle escaped the Dane, careful to stay much quieter than he was used to. “Who’da known they were a little vain, of all things? Of course, I can’t say that isn’t true, right, Norge?” 

He hummed as a simple response, but the Danish man knew he had much to say, yet couldn’t put into words. As soon as a faint mutter of his name from someone else was heard, he quickly brought his attention to his brother.

“What exactly does it sort of… take for someone to see a unicorn?” his brother asked.

The tall man answered this one, as he noticed the elder brother’s slightest uncertainty to the question. “You have to be pure-hearted, I think. Witho’t terr’ble thoughts and be honest.”

The boy nodded. “That’s certainly different from what all those fables say.”

“That must mean some children would have seen a unicorn, then. No wonder not many people believe in them,” the Finnish man concluded, “Hm. I wonder how many are left…”

“This one may be the last,” the Swedish man stated, a touch of sorrow to his tone.

The Norwegian nodded, his deep lavender eyes casted down to the ground. “No telling what happened to the rest, if there were so many before.”

“They say hunters from way-back-when would try ta use all sorts of pretty ribbons and banners to get them to come out. It’s hardly ever worked, though,” the Danish added.

“If not many have been hunted and killed, where have the rest gone, and why?”

“Who knows? I can’t say this is a good time for unicorns to live in, ya know? We keep expanding and growing more dangerous. Most of us probably gave up on looking for ‘em, but we’ll be looking for other things.”

The Swedish man nodded, and the conversation was held to yet another pause. With that, he started to turn toward the path they took to signal the others to leave. “Let’s go,” he commanded.

A groan was heard form the Dane, but the Norwegian jabbed a stern elbow at his side. There was nothing else the men could do, now that they had seen living proof that one of fantasy’s many images were real. Despite so many questions they all had, the most important lingered in the back of each of their minds in the most bothersome way possible.

On the way past the old trees, trickling streams, and babbling brooks, the five had walked in silence back out of the forest. The youngest couldn’t bear to keep the question hidden away any longer after several minutes had passed since. “Why did the unicorn approach us? It doesn’t make any sense…”

His brother shrugged, as did the Swedish man. Sometimes a unicorn’s doings would never be understood by man. The brother responded, nonetheless, despite him being aware the answer wouldn’t satisfy the question, “I’ve heard they’d give people they choose to meet something valuable from the forest.”

It was then only one knew the reason to why the men had managed to capture the sight of a unicorn that night. Making sure to inconspicuously pat the pocket at his side, he felt for the small stone that was given to him many years ago from a forgotten person. But, now that he thought about it…

The Dane smiled, putting the softly glowing red stone back where he found it. His voice at a barely audible whisper, he muttered, “How interesting…”

**Author's Note:**

> So. Um, yeah. You probably have caught on to the fact that this unicorn is heavily based off of the one in _The Last Unicorn_. To be fair, I like unicorns - that including the movie, it's a childhood thing, you know? - and the Nordic family in Hetalia, so I happened to put them together like this, I guess. Anyway, this is my first kind-of-one-shot-thing that I've posted on here (also kinda oldish), and I can't wait to get to working on some more stories! Thank you for reading; your time is well-appreciated!


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